To address the limitations of traditional minimally invasive thermal ablation technology such as poor conformability, carbonization and electromagnetic radiation, this paper proposes a steam thermal ablation technology that uses saturated steam internal energy to replace the traditional electromagnetic radiation energy. Through the steam thermal ablation system and the steam thermal ablation needle designed based on simulation, the ex vivo pig liver experiments were carried out. The results have the characteristics of the maximum ablation axis ratio (short diameter / long diameter) and non-carbonization with the same type of thermal ablation technology. Based on the near-infrared light, in this paper the curative effect of the reduced scattering coefficient of the steam thermal ablation results was evaluated. The reduced scattering coefficients of the coagulation area all exceeded 16, reaching the completely damaged state, which verified that the steam thermal ablation can effectively inactivate the tumor cells.
Steam ; Animals ; Swine ; Liver Neoplasms/surgery* ; Ablation Techniques/methods* ; Liver/surgery* ; Equipment Design

OBJECTIVES: To establish a three-dimensional (3D) visualization-based classification of the left hepatic portal vein (LHPV) and left hepatic vein (LHV) systems using 3D reconstruction technology to facilitate precise segmental/subsegmental resection of left liver lesions. METHODS: Thin-slice contrast-enhanced CT datasets from 244 patients were reconstructed using MI-3DV Works software. The spatial anatomy (origins, branching patterns, and spatial relationships) of the LHPV and LHV branches was analyzed to determine their 3D classifications and segmental liver divisions for guiding surgical planning for anatomical left liver resections. RESULTS: The 3D models of the third- and fourth-order branches of the LHPV and LHV were successfully reconstructed for all the 244 patients. Two types of the LHPV system were identified, where the LHPV either had independent origins [242 cases (99.1%)] or had right anterior portal branches arising from the LHPV trunk [2 cases (0.9%)]. 3D classifications identified two types of the Segment II of the LHPV (based on branch number), 3 types of the Segment III (by spatial distribution of the branches), compact vs dispersed types of the left lateral lobe (determined by Segment II/III branches proximity), 3 types of the Segment IV (by branch number and origin), and 3 types the fourth hilar vessels (transverse branches of the left portal vein) for their supplied segments. The LHV system had two drainage types into the inferior vena cava, and the umbilical fissure veins were classified into 3 types by drainage patterns and distance to the venous roots. These classifications combined with liver segmentations allowed individualized surgical planning for segment-specific resections. CONCLUSIONS The 3D classification of the LHPV and LHV provides valuable clinical guidance for precise anatomical resections of left liver lesions using liver segments or subsegments as anatomical units to enhance surgical accuracy and improve the outcomes of hepatobiliary surgery.
Humans ; Hepatectomy/methods* ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional ; Hepatic Veins/anatomy & histology* ; Portal Vein/anatomy & histology* ; Liver/surgery* ; Liver Neoplasms/blood supply* ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Female

This study aims to improve the quality of clinical treatment and nursing care to standardize perioperative management for patients with liver tumors undergoing co-ablation system therapy. The Committee of Ablation Therapy in Oncology, China Anti-Cancer Association; the Expert Committee on Ablation Therapy; Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO); and the Committee of Interventional, Perioperative, and Interventional Physician Branch of Chinese Medical Doctors Association organized medical and nursing experts in China. Based on the clinical practice of co-ablation system therapy in China and relevant domestic literature, an expert consensus about perioperative management was developed. The expert consensus included the key points of perioperative management, prevention, and care of complications; discharge guidance; and follow-up management for patients undergoing co-ablation system therapy of liver tumors. The consensus on the perioperative management of co-ablation system therapy for liver tumors has finally been formulated, serving as a reference and application for medical personnel in relevant fields based on hospital and patient conditions in clinical work.
Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/surgery* ; Perioperative Care ; Consensus ; Catheter Ablation

Image-guided thermal ablation (IGTA) has been widely used in the treatment of liver tumors. MRI-guided thermal ablation of liver tumors offers several advantages, including the absence of ionizing radiation; excellent soft-tissue contrast; multi-parametric and multiplanar imaging; non-invasive, real-time temperature monitoring of the thermal field during the procedure; and accurate post-procedural assessment of therapeutic efficacy. To standardize and promote MRI-guided thermal ablation for liver tumors in China, advance the technological development of IGTA for tumor treatment, and enhance the efficacy of "precision ablation" for hepatic tumors, this expert consensus (2025 edition) was collaboratively developed by national experts from multiple societies and committees through multidisciplinary discussions. The contributing groups included the Society of Tumor Ablation Therapy of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association, the Ablation Expert Committee of the Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO), the Tumor Ablation Subgroup of the National Health Commission Comprehensive Interventional Therapy Quality Control Center, the Expert Group on Tumor Ablation Therapy of the Chinese Medical Doctors Association, and the Tumor Ablation Committee of the Chinese College of Interventionalists. The main contents of the consensus include: (1) indications, contraindications, and characteristics of MRI-guided thermal ablation for liver tumors; (2) MRI magnets, guidance sequences, and MRI-compatible thermal ablation equipment and instruments; and (3) protocols for MRI-guided thermal ablation of liver tumors, efficacy assessment, and the prevention and management of complications.
Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/surgery* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Consensus ; China ; Catheter Ablation/methods* ; Ablation Techniques/methods* ; Surgery, Computer-Assisted

Humans ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/surgery* ; Liver Neoplasms/pathology* ; Cholangiocarcinoma/pathology* ; Bile Ducts, Intrahepatic/pathology* ; Bile Duct Neoplasms/pathology*

Objective: To investigate the clinical manifestations, histomorphology, and differential diagnosis of primary hepatic angiosarcoma. Methods: Nine cases of primary hepatic angiosarcoma diagnosed in the Department of Pathology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from January 2014 to December 2021 were collected, including biopsy and surgical specimens. The histomorphology, clinical, and radiologic findings were analyzed. The relevant literature was also reviewed. Results: There were six males and three females, aged 30 to 73 years (mean 57 years). Grossly, the growth pattern of the tumor was classified as either mass formation or non-mass formation (sinusoidal). Microscopically, the mass-forming primary hepatic angiosarcoma were further subdivided into vasoformative or non-vasoformative growth patterns; and those non-vasoformative tumors had either epithelioid, spindled, or undifferentiated sarcomatoid features. Sinusoidal primary hepatic angiosarcoma on the other hand presented with markedly dilated and congested blood vessels of varying sizes, with mild to moderately atypical endothelial cells. Follow-up in all nine cases revealed 8 mortality ranging from 1 to 18 months (mean 5 months) from initial diagnosis. One patient was alive with disease within a period of 48 months. Conclusions: Primary hepatic angiosarcoma is a rare entity with a wide spectrum of histomorphology, and often misdiagnosed. It should be considered when there are dilated and congested sinusoids, with overt nuclear atypia. The overall biological behavior is aggressive, and the prognosis is worse.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Hemangiosarcoma/diagnosis* ; Endothelial Cells/pathology* ; Liver Neoplasms/surgery* ; Prognosis ; Biopsy

Recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after surgery is a major factor affecting the efficacy of the treatment of patients. Neoadjuvant treatment is an effective therapeutic method to reduce postoperative recurrence and prolong patient survival. However,there is no generally accepted neoadjuvant treatment regimen that has been proven to be effective so far. Recently,with the progress in systemic antitumor therapies,represented by targeted molecular agents and immune checkpoint inhibitors,and the improvement in local regional therapies,these treatment approaches have shown promising efficacy and safety in the field of neoadjuvant treatment for HCC. Under the organizational leadership of Committee of Digestive Surgery of Chinese Research Hospital Association and Committee of Liver Cancer of Chinese Anti-Cancer Association,Alliance of Chinese Expert Consensus on Neoadjuvant Therapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma has discussed and revised several times and finally formulated the Chinese expert consensus on neoadjuvant therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (2023 edition). This consensus aimed to review the Chinese characteristics of the diagnosis and treatment of HCC,to provide specific guidance and suggestions for preoperative treatment strategies for HCC,and further promote the management of the clinical pathway for neoadjuvant treatment of HCC.
Humans ; Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use* ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/surgery* ; China ; Consensus ; Liver Neoplasms/pathology* ; Neoadjuvant Therapy

BACKGROUND: Glutamine synthetase (GS) and arginase 1 (Arg1) are widely used pathological markers that discriminate hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma; however, their clinical significance in HCC remains unclear. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 431 HCC patients: 251 received hepatectomy alone, and the other 180 received sorafenib as adjuvant treatment after hepatectomy. Expression of GS and Arg1 in tumor specimens was evaluated using immunostaining. mRNA sequencing and immunostaining to detect progenitor markers (cytokeratin 19 [CK19] and epithelial cell adhesion molecule [EpCAM]) and mutant TP53 were also conducted. RESULTS: Up to 72.4% (312/431) of HCC tumors were GS positive (GS+). Of the patients receiving hepatectomy alone, GS negative (GS-) patients had significantly better overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) than GS+ patients; negative expression of Arg1, which is exclusively expressed in GS- hepatocytes in the healthy liver, had a negative effect on prognosis. Of the patients with a high risk of recurrence who received additional sorafenib treatment, GS- patients tended to have better RFS than GS+ patients, regardless of the expression status of Arg1. GS+ HCC tumors exhibit many features of the established proliferation molecular stratification subtype, including poor differentiation, high alpha-fetoprotein levels, increased progenitor tumor cells, TP53 mutation, and upregulation of multiple tumor-related signaling pathways. CONCLUSIONS GS- HCC patients have a better prognosis and are more likely to benefit from sorafenib treatment after hepatectomy. Immunostaining of GS may provide a simple and applicable approach for HCC molecular stratification to predict prognosis and guide targeted therapy.
Humans ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/metabolism* ; Sorafenib/therapeutic use* ; Liver Neoplasms/metabolism* ; Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase/metabolism* ; Hepatectomy ; Retrospective Studies ; Prognosis ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local/surgery*

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is the second most common primary malignant tumor in the liver after hepatocellular carcinoma. Its incidence and mortality rates have increased worldwide in recent years. Surgical resection is the best treatment modality for ICC;however,the overall prognosis remains poor. Accurate evaluation of post operative prognosis allows personalized treatment and improved long-term outcomes of ICC. The American Joint Commission on Cancer TNM staging manual is the basis for the standardized diagnosis and treatment of ICC;however,the contents of stage T and stage N need to be improved. The nomogram model or scoring system established in the analysis of commonly used clinicopathological parameters can provide individualized prognostic evaluation and improve prediction accuracy;however,more studies are needed to validate the results before clinical use. Meanwhile,imaging features exhibit great potential to establish the post operative prognosis evaluation system for ICC. Molecular-based classification provides an accurate guarantee for prognostic assessment as well as selection of populations that are sensitive to targeted therapy or immunotherapy. Therefore,the establishment of a prognosis evaluation system,based on clinical and pathological characteristics and centered on the combination of multidisciplinary and multi-omics,will be conducive to improving the long-term outcomes of ICC after surgical resection in the context of big medical data.
Humans ; Bile Ducts, Intrahepatic/pathology* ; Cholangiocarcinoma/pathology* ; Prognosis ; Liver Neoplasms/surgery* ; Bile Duct Neoplasms/pathology*

Objective: To explore the outcome of different treatment strategies in patients with pancreatic cancer with synchronous liver metastasis (sLMPC). Methods: A retrospective analysis of the clinical data and treatment results of 37 patients with sLMPC treated in China-Japan Friendship Hospital was performed from April 2017 to December 2022. A total of 23 males and 14 females were included,with an age(M(IQR)) of 61 (10) years (range: 45 to 74 years). Systemic chemotherapy was carried out after pathological diagnosis. The initial chemotherapy strategy included modified-Folfirinox, albumin paclitaxel combined with Gemcitabine, and Docetaxel+Cisplatin+Fluorouracil or Gemcitabine with S1. The possibility of surgical resection (reaching the standards of surgical intervention) was determined after systemic treatment,and the chemotherapy strategy was changed in the cases of failed initial chemotherapy plans. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate the overall survival time and rate,while Log-rank and Gehan-Breslow-Wilcoxon tests were used to compare the differences of survival curves. Results: The median follow-up time for the 37 sLMPC patients was 39 months,and the median overall survival time was 13 months (range:2 to 64 months) with overall survival rates of 1-,3-,and 5-year of 59.5%,14.7%,and 14.7%,respectively. Of the 37 patients,97.3%(36/37) initially received systemic chemotherapy, 29 completed more than four cycles,resulting in a disease control rate of 69.4% (partial response in 15 cases,stable disease in 10 cases,and progressive disease in 4 cases). In the 24 patients initially planned for conversion surgery,the successful conversion rate was 54.2% (13/24). Among the 13 successfully converted patients,9 underwent surgery and their treatment outcomes were significantly better than those (4 patients) of those who did not undergo surgery (median survival time not reached vs. 13 months,P<0.05). Regarding the 9 patients whose conversion was unsuccessful, no significant differences were observed in median survival time between the surgical group (4 cases) and the non-surgical group (5 cases) (P>0.05). In the allowed-surgery group(n=13),the decreased in pre-surgical CA19-9 levels and the regression of liver metastases were more significant in the successful conversion sub-group than in the ineffective conversion sub-group;however, no significant differences were observed in the changes in primary lesion between the two groups. Conclusion: For highly selective patients with sLMPC who achieve partial response after receiving effective systemic treatment,the adoption of an aggressive surgical treatment strategy can significantly improve survival time;however, surgery dose not provide such survival benefits in patients who do not achieve partial response after systemic chemotherapy.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/surgery* ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use* ; Retrospective Studies ; Docetaxel/therapeutic use* ; Liver Neoplasms/secondary* ; Fluorouracil ; Leucovorin/therapeutic use*